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A tram is a vehicle used for public transportation that travels on rails embedded in the streets of urban (and sometimes suburban) areas — however trams may have some parts of their tramway on elevated tracks or along separated railway tracks. Trams are usually electrically powered, using a extending metal "pantograph" mounted on the top of the driving vehicle to connect with overhead wires.

Trams are referred to as "trolleys" in the United States, and as "streetcars" in Canada (in addition to the term "tram").

Trams and Trains

While similar in form and function to a train (especially urban light rail), trams are limited to fixed intracity routes, they operate at street speeds, follow traffic signals, and share the road with other traffic; like a bus, trams stop at sheltered or signed stops, rather than travelling station to station. If a "train" is shown on a city street in a scene, and has pole or metal structure touching an overhead wire, it should be tagged as tram.

See Also

• rail transit
• train
• monorail
• funicular